Needle and a method of assembly thereof

ABSTRACT

A needle having a shaft member and an eye member that is rotatable relative to the shaft member. The needle addresses the problem of a thread becoming twisted during use. The rotatable coupling between the shaft and eye member preferably has a surface profile that does not substantially alter the outer surface profile of the needle, thereby minimizing any affect on the normal use of the needle.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a needle and a method of assemblythereof.

The invention has been developed primarily for use in the craft andmedical industries and will be described hereinafter with reference tothis application. However, it will be appreciated that the invention isnot limited to this particular field of use.

BACKGROUND

A needle pulling thread is often rotated during use, resulting in thethread becoming twisted. The inventor has identified that a twistedthread is likely to become tangled and knotted and, as a result,difficult to draw. Furthermore, in medical applications, the inventorhas identified that a tangled or knotted thread is likely to result inpoorly formed sutures or increase tissue trauma.

It is to be understood that, if any prior art information is referred toherein, such reference does not constitute an admission that theinformation forms part of the common general knowledge in the art, inAustralia or any other country.

SUMMARY

The invention seeks to provide a needle which will overcome orsubstantially ameliorate at least some of the deficiencies of the priorart, or to at least provide an alternative.

According to one aspect, there is provided a needle comprising a shaftmember and an eye member, the shaft member being rotatably coupled tothe eye member.

Advantageously, the needle addresses the problem of a thread becomingtwisted in use. For example, should the shaft member be rotated in afirst direction in use, the rotatable coupling allows the eye member tonot twist so that the thread does not become twisted.

Preferably, the shaft member and the eye member are shaped to define acomplimentary rotatable male and female coupling.

Advantageously, the male and female coupling allows the eye member andthe shaft member to be rotatably coupled without substantially alteringthe outer surface profile of the needle, thereby minimizing any affecton the normal use of the needle.

Preferably, the complimentary rotatable male and female coupling is aball and socket-type coupling.

Advantageously, a ball and socket-type coupling is a simple and robusttype of mechanical coupling aiding not only the manufacture of theneedle but also the robustness of the needle.

Preferably, the complimentary rotatable male and female couplingcomprises a male portion and a female portion,

-   -   the male portion defines a first surface, and    -   the female portion defines a second surface adapted to bear        against the first surface to rotably secure the male portion        within the female portion.

Advantageously, the male portion and the female portion mechanicallycooperate so as to secure the male portion within the female portion,thereby preventing the male portion and the female portion from becomingseparated in use

Preferably, the male portion comprises a circumferential groove and thefemale portion comprises a circumferential rib adapted for locationwithin the circumferential groove. Preferably, the female portioncomprises a circumferential groove and the male portion comprises acircumferential rib adapted for location within the circumferentialgroove.

Advantageously, the mechanical interlock of the circumferential grooveand the circumferential rib provides a simple and robust rotatablecoupling between the eye member and the shaft member.

Preferably, the male portion is shaped such that, during manufacture,the female portion deforms under a deformation force provided by theforcing of the male portion towards the female portion so as to definethe second surface.

Advantageously, the shaping of the male portion so as to deform thefemale portion allows for the creation of the rotatable male and femalecoupling during manufacture of the needle by forcing the male portiontowards the female portion.

Preferably, the male portion is split such that the diameter of the maleportion can decrease to allow for the insertion of the male portionwithin the female portion. Preferably, female portion is split such thatthe diameter of the female portion can increase to allow for theinsertion of the male portion within the female portion.

Advantageously, the male and the female portion are adapted to assist inthe manufacture of the needle.

Preferably, a retaining means adapted to provide a mechanical interlockbetween the eye member and the shaft member.

Advantageously, the retaining means provides a more robust rotatablecoupling between the eye member and the shaft member. Furthermore, theretaining means may be further adapted to prevent the ingress of fluidinto the rotatable coupling so as to make the needle suitable forsterile medical applications.

Preferably, the retaining means, the shaft member and the eye member areshaped to define a pair of complimentary rotatable male and femalecouplings located at opposing ends of the retaining means.

Advantageously, a pair of rotatable couplings provides rotationalredundancy in the event of one of the rotatable male and femalecouplings becoming jammed.

Preferably, each of the pair of rotatable male and female couplingscomprises a male portion comprising a circumferential groove and afemale portion comprising a circumferential rib adapted for locationwithin a respective circumferential groove. Preferably, each of the pairof rotatable male and female couplings comprises a female portioncomprising a circumferential groove and a male portion comprising acircumferential rib adapted for location within a respectivecircumferential groove.

Advantageously, the mechanical interlock of the circumferential grooveand the circumferential rib provides a simple and robust rotatablecoupling between the eye member and the shaft member.

Preferably, the needle further comprises a cylindrical brace adapted tosubstantially prevent the eye member from titling with respect to theshaft member.

Advantageously, the cylindrical brace may be adapted to prevent the eyemember from titling with respect to the shaft member so as to minimizethe cross sectional area of the needle in use Furthermore, thecylindrical brace may be further adapted to prevent the ingress of fluidwithin the rotatable coupling so as to be suited for sterileenvironments.

Preferably, the needle is manufactured from a bio-compatible material.

Advantageously, the needle is particularly suited for medical, clinicalor vetinary applications.

According to another aspect, there is provided a method of assembling aneedle having a first member and a second member, the method comprisingthe steps of

-   -   forcing the first member and the second member together such        that the first member and the second member mechanically        interlock to form a rotatable coupling.

Advantageously, the needle may be assembled during manufacture in anefficient manner. The forcing the first member and the second membertogether can be automated by a machine, thereby removing the need for ahuman assembly line.

Preferably, the first member is shaped to define a female portion andthe second member is shaped to define a complementary male portion, andwherein the step of forcing the first member and the second membertogether causes the female portion to deform so as to at least partiallysurround the male portion to form the rotatable coupling.

Advantageously, the female portion is shaped so as to crimp about themale portion, while still mainlining the rotatable coupling between thefirst portion and the second portion. The deformation of the femaleportion ensures that the first portion and the second portion cannotbecome detached in use.

Preferably, the second member is further shaped to define a recess andwherein the step of forcing the first member and the second membertogether causes the recess to receive at least a portion of the femaleportion therein and to cause the deformation of the female portion so asto at least partially surround the male portion to form the rotatablecoupling.

Advantageously, the recess guides the deformation of the female portionthereby ensuring that the female portion takes the correct shape aboutthe male portion.

Other aspects of the invention are also disclosed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Notwithstanding any other forms which may fall within the scope of thepresent invention, preferred embodiments of the invention will now bedescribed, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanyingdrawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows a needle comprising a shaft member and an eye member inaccordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 shows a needle wherein a shaft member and an eye member areshaped to define a complimentary rotatable male and female coupling inaccordance with another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 shows a needle wherein the complimentary rotatable male andfemale coupling comprises a male portion and a female portion inaccordance with another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4, shows a needle further comprising a retaining means adapted toprovide a mechanical interlock between an eye member and a shaft memberin accordance with another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 5 a and 5 b show a male portion of a needle being shaped such thata female portion deforms under a deformation force provided by theforcing of the male portion towards the female portion in accordancewith another embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 6 shows a needle having a cylindrical brace adapted tosubstantially prevent an eye member from titling with respect to a shaftmember in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS

It should be noted in the following description that like or the samereference numerals in different embodiments denote the same or similarfeatures.

FIG. 1 shows a needle 100 comprising a shaft member 110 and an eyemember 105. The shaft member 100 is rotatably coupled to the eye member105.

As such one aspect of the needle advantageously addresses the problem ofa thread becoming twisted in use For example, should the shaft member berotated in a first direction in use the rotatable coupling allows theeye member to not twist so that the thread does not become twisted.

Such a needle has a wide range of application, including needles forcraft such as sewing and upholstery needles and needles for medicineincluding surgical needles.

Furthermore, while the shaft member 110 of the needle 100 is shown inFIG. 1 to be straight, certain embodiments comprise a curved shaftmember 110 depending on the application, such as needles used forsurgical suture, for example.

Furthermore, while an eye member 105 is shown in FIG. 1, the needle 100in certain embodiments may also be a hypodermic needle, wherein theshaft member 110 of the needle is rotatably coupled to a syringe, so asto eliminate any twisting of the shaft member 110, especially wheninserted into a patient.

FIG. 2 shows the needle 100 wherein the shaft member 110 and the eyemember 105 are shaped to define a complimentary rotatable male andfemale coupling 205.

The male and female coupling 205 allows the eye member 205 to rotatewith respect to the shaft member 110. While the male and female coupling205 given in FIG. 2 shows the shaft member 110 having a female portionand the eye portion 105 having a male portion, in certain embodiments,the shaft member 110 has the male portion and the eye portion 105 hasthe female portion. As will be further described below, the male andfemale coupling 205 is shaped to prevent the detachment of the eyemember 105 from the shaft member 110 in use.

In the embodiment given in FIG. 2, the complimentary rotatable male andfemale coupling 205 is a ball and socket-type coupling. A ball andsocket-type coupling is a simple and robust type of mechanical couplingaiding not only the manufacture of the needle 100 but also therobustness of the needle 100. As shown in FIG. 2, the male and femaleportions of the coupling 205 may be shaped to define a transversesurface interface 210 to substantially prevent the eye member 105 fromtilting with respect to the shaft member 110.

Turning now to FIG. 3, there is shown the needle 100 wherein thecomplimentary rotatable male and female coupling 205 comprises a maleportion 315 and a female portion 325. In this manner, the male portion315 defines a first surface 310 and the female portion 320 defines asecond surface 305 adapted to bear against the first surface 310 torotatably secure the male portion 315 within the female portion 320.Again, while the male and female coupling 205 given in FIG. 3 shows theshaft member 110 having the male portion 315 and the eye portion 105having the female portion 320, in certain embodiments, the shaft member110 has the female portion 320 and the eye portion 105 has a maleportion 315.

As is shown in FIG. 3, the male portion 315 may comprise acircumferential groove and the female portion 320 may comprise acircumferential rib adapted for location within the circumferentialgroove. In this manner, the circumferential groove provides the firstsurface and the circumferential rib provides the second surface. Themechanical interlock of the circumferential groove and thecircumferential rib provides a simple and robust rotatable couplingbetween the eye member 105 and the shaft member 110. In certainembodiments, the male portion may be tapered or the female portionfunneled so as to assist in the insertion of the male portion within thefemale portion during manufacture.

In certain embodiments, the male portion 315 is split such that thediameter of the male portion 315 can decrease to allow for the insertionof the male portion 315 within the female portion 320. Alternatively oradditionally, the female portion 320 may be split such that the diameterof the female portion 320 can increase to allow for the insertion of themale portion 315 within the female portion 320.

FIGS. 5 a and 5 b show an embodiment of the needle 100 wherein the maleportion 315 is shaped such that the female portion 320 deforms under adeformation force provided by the forcing of the male portion 315towards the female portion 320 so as to define the second surface.Specifically, as is shown in FIG. 5 a, the male portion 510 comprises aguide recess 510. As such, upon the female portion 320 being forcedtowards the male portion 510, as is shown in FIG. 5 b, the guide recess510 is adapted to receive the female portion 320 therein and deform thefemale portion 320 such that the female portion is crimped around themale portion 315. Such an arrangement allows for the simple creation ofthe rotatable male and female coupling 205 during manufacture of theneedle 110. In certain embodiments, the tip of the female portion 320may comprise one or more lengthwise cut-outs to assist in thedeformation of the female portion 320 around the male portion 315.

Turning now to FIG. 4, there is shown the needle 100 further comprisinga retaining means 405 adapted to provide a mechanical interlock betweenthe eye member 105 and the shaft member 110. The retaining means 405provides a more robust rotatable coupling between the eye member 105 andthe shaft member 110. Furthermore, the retaining means 405 may befurther adapted to prevent the ingress of fluid into the rotatablecoupling so as to make the needle 100 suitable for sterile medicalapplications.

In this manner, the retaining means 405, the shaft member 110 and theeye member 105 are shaped to define a pair of complimentary rotatablemale and female couplings 205 located at opposing ends of the retainingmeans 405. A pair of rotatable couplings eases the rotation of the eyemember 105 and the shaft member 110 and provides redundancy in the eventof one of the rotatable male and female couplings 205 becoming jammed.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, each coupling comprises a maleportion 315 comprising a circumferential groove and a female portion 320comprising a circumferential rib adapted for location within arespective circumferential groove.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, there is shown a needle having acylindrical brace 605 adapted to substantially prevent the eye member105 from titling with respect to the shaft member 110. The cylindricalbrace 605 may be further adapted to prevent the ingress of fluid withinthe rotatable coupling so as to be suited for sterile environments. Thecylindrical brace 605 may be attached to either the shaft member 110 orthe eye member 105. Alternatively, the cylindrical brace 605 may beadapted to slidably come to rest at the location of the rotatable maleand female coupling 205.

In one embodiment, the needle is manufactured from a bio-compatiblematerial, thereby adapting the needle for use in the medical field.

It should be noted that in certain embodiments, male and femalecouplings other that those described above may be employed to rotatablycouple the eye member 105 and the shaft member 110.

INTERPRETATION

Embodiments:

Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment” or “anembodiment” means that a particular feature, structure or characteristicdescribed in connection with the embodiment is included in at least oneembodiment of the present invention. Thus, appearances of the phrases“in one embodiment” or “in an embodiment” in various places throughoutthis specification are not necessarily all referring to the sameembodiment, but may Furthermore, the particular features, structures orcharacteristics may be combined in any suitable manner, as would beapparent to one of ordinary skill in the art from this disclosure, inone or more embodiments.

Similarly it should be appreciated that in the above description ofexample embodiments of the invention, various features of the inventionare sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, ordescription thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure andaiding in the understanding of one or more of the various inventiveaspects. This method of disclosure, however, is not to be interpreted asreflecting an intention that the claimed invention requires morefeatures than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as thefollowing claims reflect, inventive aspects lie in less than allfeatures of a single foregoing disclosed embodiment. Thus, the claimsfollowing the Detailed Description of Specific Embodiments are herebyexpressly incorporated into this Detailed Description of SpecificEmbodiments, with each claim standing on its own as a separateembodiment of this invention.

Furthermore, while some embodiments described herein include some butnot other features included in other embodiments, combinations offeatures of different embodiments are meant to be within the scope ofthe invention, and form different embodiments, as would be understood bythose in the art. For example, in the following claims, any of theclaimed embodiments can be used in any combination.

Specific Details

In the description provided herein, numerous specific details are setforth. However, it is understood that embodiments of the invention maybe practiced without these specific details. In other instances,well-known methods, structures and techniques have not been shown indetail in order not to obscure an understanding of this description.

Terminology

In describing the preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated inthe drawings, specific terminology will be resorted to for the sake ofclarity. However, the invention is not intended to be limited to thespecific terms so selected, and it is to be understood that eachspecific term includes all technical equivalents which operate in asimilar manner to accomplish a similar technical purpose. Terms such as“forward”, “rearward”, “radially”, “peripherally”, “upwardly”,“downwardly”, and the like are used as words of convenience to providereference points and are not to be construed as limiting terms.

Different Instances of Objects

As used herein, unless otherwise specified the use of the ordinaladjectives “first”, “second”, “third”, etc., to describe a commonobject, merely indicate that different instances of like objects arebeing referred to and are not intended to imply that the objects sodescribed must be in a given sequence, either temporally, spatially, inranking, or in any other manner.

Comprising and Including

In the claims which follow and in the preceding description of theinvention, except where the context requires otherwise due to expresslanguage or necessary implication, the word “comprise” or variationssuch as “comprises” or “comprising” are used in an inclusive sense, i.e.to specify the presence of the stated features but not to preclude thepresence or addition of further features in various embodiments of theinvention.

Any one of the terms: including or which includes or that includes asused herein is also an open term that also means including at least theelements/features that follow the term, but not excluding others. Thus,including is synonymous with and means comprising.

Scope of Invention

Thus, while there has been described what are believed to be thepreferred embodiments of the invention, those skilled in the art willrecognize that other and further modifications may be made theretowithout departing from the spirit of the invention, and it is intendedto claim all such changes and modifications as fall within the scope ofthe invention. For example, any formulas given above are merelyrepresentative of procedures that may be used Functionality may be addedor deleted from the block diagrams and operations may be interchangedamong functional blocks. Steps may be added or deleted to methodsdescribed within the scope of the present invention.

Although the invention has been described with reference to specificexamples, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that theinvention may be embodied in many other forms.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

It is apparent from the above, that the arrangements described areapplicable to the craft and medical industries.

1. A needle comprising a shaft member and an eye member, the shaftmember being rotatably coupled to the eye member.
 2. A needle as claimedin claim 1, wherein the shaft member and the eye member are shaped todefine a complimentary rotatable male and female coupling.
 3. A needleas claimed in claim 2, wherein the complimentary rotatable male andfemale coupling is a ball and socket-type coupling.
 4. A needle asclaimed in claim 2, wherein: the complimentary rotatable male and femalecoupling comprises a male portion and a female portion, the male portiondefines a first surface, and the female portion defines a second surfaceadapted to bear against the first surface to rotably secure the maleportion within the female portion.
 5. A needle as claimed in claim 4,wherein the male portion comprises a circumferential groove and thefemale portion comprises a circumferential rib adapted for locationwithin the circumferential groove.
 6. A needle as claimed in claim 4,wherein the female portion comprises a circumferential groove and themale portion comprises a circumferential rib adapted for location withinthe circumferential groove.
 7. A needle as claimed in claim 4, whereinthe male portion is shaped such that, during manufacture, the femaleportion deforms under a deformation force provided by the forcing of themale portion towards the female portion so as to define the secondsurface.
 8. A needle as claimed in claim 4, wherein the male portion issplit such that the diameter of the male portion can decrease to allowfor the insertion of the male portion within the female portion.
 9. Aneedle as claimed in claim 4, wherein the female portion is split suchthat the diameter of the female portion can increase to allow for theinsertion of the male portion within the female portion.
 10. A needle asclaimed in claim 1, further comprising: a retaining means adapted toprovide a mechanical interlock between the eye member and the shaftmember.
 11. A needle as claimed in claim 10, wherein the retainingmeans, the shaft member and the eye member are shaped to define a pairof complimentary rotatable male and female couplings located at opposingends of the retaining means.
 12. A needle as claimed in claim 11,wherein each of the pair of rotatable male and female couplingscomprises a male portion comprising a circumferential groove and afemale portion comprising a circumferential rib adapted for locationwithin a respective circumferential groove.
 13. A needle as claimed inclaim 11, wherein each of the pair of rotatable male and femalecouplings comprises a female portion comprising a circumferential grooveand a male portion comprising a circumferential rib adapted for locationwithin a respective circumferential groove.
 13. A needle as claimed inclaim 1, further comprising a cylindrical brace adapted to substantiallyprevent the eye member from titling with respect to the shaft member.14. A needle as claimed in claim 1, wherein the needle is manufacturedfrom a bio-compatible material.
 15. A needle being substantially asherein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
 16. Amethod of assembling a needle having a first member and a second member,the method comprising the steps of: forcing the first member and thesecond member together such that the first member and the second membermechanically interlock to form a rotatable coupling.
 17. A method asclaimed in claim 16, wherein the first member is shaped to define afemale portion and the second member is shaped to define a complementarymale portion, and wherein the step of forcing the first member and thesecond member together causes the female portion to deform so as to atleast partially surround the male portion to form the rotatablecoupling.
 18. A method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the second memberis further shaped to define a recess and wherein the step of forcing thefirst member and the second member together causes the recess to receiveat least a portion of the female portion therein and to cause thedeformation of the female portion so as to at least partially surroundthe male portion to form the rotatable coupling.